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We need more time to test all of the great recipes you're submitting, so we're changing the contest schedule slightly. From now on, we'll give you a preview of contest themes on Fridays and officially announce these contest themes on Monday (you can begin submitting recipes then) but the new deadline for submissions will be Friday at midnight. So if you need time on the weekend to perfect your recipes, you should look for the theme previews on Fridays.

This week's contest theme preview:

Recipes with paprika, any kind of paprika

Mushroom soup

Winners will still be revealed on Wednesday, but finalists will now be announced on Thursday.

Finger food would be a nice theme I think. I'm always looking for nice and creative snack ideas to make the aperitif more special. It can set the tone for the night, and you can take it in so many different directions.

How do you decide what makes a good category? Do you have a list that you prepared ahead of time? Are you responding to the recipes that have been submitted? Or do you change it up to keep your cooks on their toes? Do tell.

Good questions, all. It's actually a combination of the things you mentioned. We started with a master list but have been adapting it as we see what appeals to people. We try to think about what will produce a complete, well-rounded cookbook, but we also like the idea of experimenting with some very specific ideas, à la this week's upcoming paprika theme. Please don't hesitate to suggest contest themes!